Tag Archives: emotion

Working as an educator for the Family Life Program at Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA), it’s my passion and goal to help Service Members and their families obtain knowledge and provide family enrichment and resilience services.

With the holiday season here, being mindful of our anxiety and stress levels can prepare us for any event that may come along. With family members and other special guests in our homes, proper planning can arm you against the uninvited company of stress and anger.

This mindfulness includes being aware of our triggers as well as our own stress building beliefs. Such triggers can include disrespect, injustice, lack of control and misinformation. They are usually classified into four categories: SELF, SITUATIONS, OTHERS and/or a COMBINATION of ANY.

In regards to anger, it’s important that we understand that anger is what we FEEL not what we DO. Knowing this, we are able to change the negative thought playing in our head to something positive and realistic. How many times have you been in argument with someone to where the levels reached a point in which what you were arguing about in the beginning was no longer the topic? To prevent this, use “Thought Stopping”. This technique provides the opportunity to examine your feelings to see if they are caused by the present situation, or linked to previous situations.

Some steps to manage your anger include:

Admit that all angry expressions, whether they are good or bad,are the result of choices.

Let go of excessive dependencies so your anger management is inwardly-directed, rather than externally-determined.

Release your craving for control in exchange for freedom.
Set aside idealistic myths so that you have a foundation in truths.
Keep your lifestyle habits consistent with your emotional composure.
Live in humility rather than self-preoccupied pride.
Hold your defenses to a minimum.
Accept the inevitability of loneliness as your struggle to be understood.
Relate to others as equals.
Pass along to our next generation your insights about anger and stress.
Avoid rationalizing your anger and be accountable for who you are.
Be accountable for your own growth & be honest and open about your anger.

According to the Random House Dictionary, stress is defined as, “physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension,” and, “a situation, occurrence, or factor causing this.” The word “stress” actually comes from a Latin word meaning, “distress.” Stressors can be hard to pinpoint because it is an individual thing. For me, family gatherings can cause stress – but it may be one of your great joys in life. With it being known that stress is different for everyone, your coping technique will be individualized as well.

The most important aspect of stress is the ability to handle it. Since most stress is self-induced, the ability to handle it rests, primarily, with the individual. Whether you encounter positive or negative stress, a way to manage involves understanding the Triple A Approach. With this approach you can choose to, Alter the situation or your approach to it, Avoid the situation or Accept the situation. Approaches to relieve stress can be divided into:

Research shows that if not managed properly, stress and anger can cause many physical side effects including but not limited to muscle tension, headaches, high blood pressure, insomnia, depression, obesity and increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The duration and levels of stress and anger attained play an important part on the increase of these effects. Having effective ways to reduce the effects of stress and anger on our body and mind is important.

In parting, I enjoy ending discussions with a quote. So I found one that fits my mantra to a “T.”

“The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.”
William James

You can find an abundance of stress and anger management articles and assessments on-line. Pertaining to this article, resources used include:
www.stress.org
www.militaryonesource.com
www.helpguide.org

Today I had the privilege to be a very small part of several hundred people who gathered to honor a fallen warrior. Army Sgt. Thomas Bohall returned to Texas today from Afghanistan and he was met by a line of respect that stretched for more than half a mile.

Words, however, are a poor substitute to the sights and more specifically to a single face in which a whole world of non-verbal emotion collided.

Lining the road there were uniforms, mostly ABUs, the odd BDU, flight suits, civilian slacks, skirts, suits. They were representative of the team that makes the military work. They were worn by every skin tone you could consider and they came equipped with boots, shoes, pumps, and heels; with berets, flight caps, garrison caps and even cowboy hats, and they stood under a double line of 50 state flags – everywhere you looked you could see all of America represented.
At the end of the line, through the base gates, two ladder trucks from local fire departments formed an arch across the road, with an American flag hanging. And as the procession approached, what little noise there was ceased. Cars stopped, contractors doing grounds maintenance stood at attention and doffed their hats, uniformed service members saluted.

As Sgt. Bohall passed I dipped my eyes and in a fraction of a second, locked eyes with a woman who I can only assume was a wife, girlfriend or sister. I’ll never know. She was no more than two feet away. She was sitting sideways in her car, facing directly into the row of us lining the road. Her face, wracked with grief and desperately straining to hold back tears that would end her connection with us, was a storm of emotion.

Barely visible beneath the grief there was also a hint of a smile on her tear-stained lips. That near-smile and her wide eyes spoke clearly of pride – the pride she had for Sgt. Bohall – Thomas — regardless of the relationship they shared. Mostly, however, I saw in her face thankfulness. She was staring at people who had never met Thomas, never met her or her family, and yet here they were. On some level I think she probably understood at that moment that Thomas had always been around family, even when he was far from home.

In a second, she was gone, replaced by the low rumble of 74 motorcycles from the Patriot Guard, providing top cover for Sgt. Bohall and his family.

Salutes were lowered, cars moved, groundskeepers went back to work, but it was all quieter now. Did it matter that we were there; that we took an insignificant portion of our lives and saluted a fallen comrade?

Had you seen this woman’s face, her eyes, her gratitude, you wouldn’t even ask.

It made a difference. It mattered … a lot.

Photos: (Top) A U.S. Army carry team transfers the remains of Army Sgt. Thomas A. Bohall, of Bel Aire, Kan., at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, June 7. Sergeant Bohall was assigned to the 4th Battalion, 101st Aviation Regiment, 159th Combat Aviation Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault), Fort Campbell, Ky. (Bottom) A crowd gathers as a motorcade processional transporting the remains of Army Sgt. Thomas A. Bohall. Sergeant Bohall was one of six soldiers from Fort Campbell who were supporting Operation Enduring Freedom and killed by an improvised explosive device during an insurgent attack May 26, 2011 in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. (U.S. Air Force photos by Don Lindsey)

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The official blog of the U.S. Air Force, Air Force Live, is maintained by the Air Force Public Affairs Agency. The site is intended to connect Air Force Airmen with online readers. The site is a reflection of the men and women serving in the Air Force. For more information, visit www.af.mil, and see our About page. For information on joining the Air Force, visit www.airforce.com.